1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to printing control according to combinations of color materials.
2. Related Art
In recent years, there has been a trend toward an increase in the types of ink which can be used by domestic printers. This is because, by making combined usage of ink of a greater number of types, it is possible to implement a wide color reproduction gamut in which the colors unique to the color materials of each ink are utilized. However, there are also those users who prioritize printing using as few types of inks as possible over implementing a wide color reproduction gamut. For example, in order to print text in which the color reproduction gamut is unimportant with a printer in which six inks are installed, a situation where users must purchase all six inks especially also arises. The selection of the print quality required by the user is implemented to a certain degree through the selection of the printer model (the selection of a model in which four inks are installed or a model in which six inks are installed, for example). However, a model which individually satisfies the needs of an unspecified number of users is practically impossible for all the printer manufacturing sources to provide. Furthermore, changes in the application of the printer after the printer is purchased by a single user may also be considered and it is also possible to consider the subsequent arrival of a situation where it is necessary to prepare ink in order to implement the print quality which the user does not currently require.
However, a technology which presents and switches combinations of inks which have a color reproduction gamut which covers the color gamut represented by the image data of a print target has been proposed (See Japanese Patent Application Laid Open No. 2006-82460). With a constitution of this kind, ink which is suitable for the printing of the image data of the print target can be used in printing.
However, in cases where the ink used for printing is dynamically changed in accordance with the image data of the print target, printing cannot be performed merely by installing ink that has actually changed in the printer. This is because, in order to ultimately drive the printer head in accordance with the image data of the print target, a color conversion profile which prescribes the conversion rules for converting the image data of the print target into image data for the ink amounts of the changed ink is required. In Japanese Patent Application Laid Open No. 2006-82460, the printing control section 18 (See paragraph [0005] of Japanese Patent Application Laid Open No. 2006-82460) may be considered to fulfill this function but it is not clear what kind of color conversion profile is being used. For example, although a procedure that prepares an infinite color conversion profile which corresponds with all ink combinations may also be considered in anticipation of all ink combinations, the color conversion profile prescribes the rules for conversion between a color space and an ink amount space and there is a large amount of data. Hence, this procedure is not practical in particular if there are a large number of combinations of inks which can be used. Therefore, even when an ink set which is capable of implementing a favorable color reproduction gamut exists, there has been the problem that color conversion which flexibly corresponds with the ink set cannot be performed. In addition, the needs of the user with respect to the print result is not limited to the color reproduction gamut and there has been a need for the flexible use of an ink set which is favorable for another print performance.